Guansing, Eugene Rhey S.

A. Man, and Crops in the Ecosystem

1. Definition of Ecosystem
An ecosystem is defined as all the organisms (animals, plants, microbes) in a certain
habitat, plus also the environment that they live in (such as the soil, a pond, or a
mountainside). Natural ecosystems usually contain hundreds or thousands of species of
organisms and are thus very complex in their functioning. In contrast, an agricultural
ecosystem (such as a corn field or an orchard) is relatively artificial, being modified and
controlled by humans. It contains fewer species and thus is simpler in its functioning.

2. The Flow of Energy

But simpler is not really better. A complex natural ecosystem, with its many species,
operates with an intricate “web” of interrelationships among the species. They can be
pictured in a very simplified diagram:

What is the source of energy for almost all ecosystems?

The Sun supports most of Earth's ecosystems. Plants create chemical energy from abiotic
factors that include solar energy. Chemo synthesizing bacteria create usable chemical
energy from unusable chemical energy. The food energy created by producers is passed to
consumers, scavengers, and decomposers.

Energy flows through an ecosystem in only one direction. Energy is passed from
organisms at one trophic level or energy level to organisms in the next trophic level. Most of
the energy at a trophic level – about 90% – is used at that trophic level. Organisms need it
for growth, locomotion, heating themselves, and reproduction. So animals at the second
trophic level have only about 10% as much energy available to them as do organisms at the
first trophic level. Animals at the third level have only 10% as much available to them as
those at the second level.

The set of organisms that pass energy from one trophic level to the next is described as
the food chain. What is a more accurate way to depict the passage of energy in an
ecosystem? A food web recognizes that many organisms eat at multiple trophic levels. Even
food webs are interconnected. All organisms depend on two global food webs. The base of
one is phytoplankton and the other is land plants. How are these two webs interconnected?
Birds or bears that live on land may eat fish, which connects the two food webs.
 Humans are an important part of both of these food webs; we are at the top of a food
web, since nothing eats us. That means that we are top predators.

3. The cycling of nutrients

The basic nutrient cycle. Source: USDA NRCS & NSTA (2010)

These nutrients – essentially chemical elements – are continuously in a circular

movement, the nutrient cycle. The nutrient cycle is hence a general term that describes how
nutrients move from the physical environment into living organisms, and are subsequently
recycled back to the physical environment (MARTIN 2010). Nutrients in the soil are taken up by
plants, which are consumed by humans or animals, and excreted again by them — or they are
released back into the environment when organisms die (e.g. plants lose their leaves).
Microorganisms in the soil break this matter down, and again make nutrients available in their
mineral form, which makes it possible for plants to take them up again (see also nutrient
requirements of plants).

Essentially, all nutrients that plants and also human beings require to survive are cycled
in this way. In relation to water management and sanitation, it is mainly N, P and K that are of
high priority. They are the most important nutrients to sustain plant growth and agriculture, and
thus humanity.

As described above, nutrients are continuously recycled in a natural ecosystem. In

recent decades, population growth and resulting human activities such as large-scale farming
have caused some significant changes in nutrient cycles.

4. Pollution

Pollution is the introduction of harmful materials into the environment. These harmful
materials are called pollutants. Pollutants can be natural, such as volcanic ash. They can also
be created by human activity, such as trash or runoff produced by factories. Pollutants
damage the quality of air, water, and land.
 Many things that are useful to people produce pollution. Cars spew pollutants from
their exhaust pipes. Burning coal to create electricity pollutes the air. Industries and homes
generate garbage and sewage that can pollute the land and water. Pesticides—chemical
poisons used to kill weeds and insects—seep into waterways and harm wildlife.

All living things—from one-celled microbes to blue whales—depend on Earth’s supply of

air and water. When these resources are polluted, all forms of life are threatened.

Pollution is a global problem. Although urban areas are usually more polluted than the
countryside, pollution can spread to remote places where no people live. For example,
pesticides and other chemicals have been found in the Antarctic ice sheet. In the middle of
the northern Pacific Ocean, a huge collection of microscopic plastic particles forms what is
known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

B. Production Systems and Crop Management

1. Lowland
Agriculture in the lowlands takes place on small peasant farms that produce
annual food crops for subsistence and markets. Rice and vegetables are the first and
second most important food crops produced. This farming system is found in both
humid and moist subhumid agro-ecological zones in well-watered mainly flat
landscapes8. It covers an estimated 197 million ha and, with an agricultural
population of 474 million, it is the most populous system in the region.

Cultivated area is 71 million ha, of which about 45 percent are irrigated. Large
areas of this system are found in Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, South and Central
East China, Philippines and Indonesia. Smaller areas are located in Cambodia, Korea
DPR, Republic of Korea, Laos DPR and Malaysia. The farming system is dominantly
rice-based, with cropping intensity dependent on rainfall distribution, length of
growing season and the availability of supplementary irrigation. Important
subsidiary crops include oilseeds, maize, root crops, soybeans, sugarcane, cotton,
vegetables and fruits in all areas, while wheat is significant in Central East China.
Both livestock and off-farm income contribute to household livelihoods. Regional
food security depends upon the production from this system. The prevalence of
poverty is moderate overall, although it is extensive in Mynamar and Cambodia.

2. Upland

Sustainable farming systems in upland areas are one of the greatest challenges
facing Asian agriculture, since a balance is sought between economic development
and environmental protection in those areas. Uplands are particularly sensitive to
agricultural encroachments. Driven by growing food demand to feed increasing
populations and low farm income in many Asian uplands, however, there is a
 tendency to use more productive, intensive farming methods in place of traditional
subsistence farming characterized by poor crop yields and low farm productivity.
Intensive farming methods suitable for lowlands can be disastrous when used on
uplands without proven technologies and experience, promoting deforestation and
soil erosion and reducing land productivity.

The problem of sustainable upland agriculture is not a technical one as such but
it is more institutional, involving limited R&D investment in upland farming
research, sociopolitical neglect of marginalized upland societies, low capacity of
communities, and inappropriate development planning. In recent years, there have
been some successful examples of sustainable upland farming which need to be
shared among member countries.

C. Features of Sustainable Crop Production

1. Sustainable Agricultural Concept

The concept of sustainable agriculture (SA) can be described as a system of ecological

farming practices, which is based on scientific innovations through which it is possible to
produce healthy foods with respect for the land, air, water, and farmers’ health and rights.

The basic principles are employed to satisfy the needs of humankind for healthy food, to
improve the quality of environment, to maintain the natural resources base, to use non-
renewable and on-farm resources in the most effective way, to implement the natural
biological cycles and to support rural economic development as well as the quality of
farmers’ life.

The idea of sustainability involves farmers should:

 anticipate change – they recognize, accept, plan for, and create change.
 recognize and identify limitations and resources and create strategies to
develop their resources and to minimize and overcome limitations.
 not be satisfied with average business practices or products; high quality
characterizes every component of their business.
 recognize sustainable farms are businesses first and foremost, but profits are
used to grow the business and to address broader social and environmental
goals.
 take appropriate risks, incur reasonable debt, and make investments based on
mid-to-long-term challenges and opportunities.

2. Diversification

Agricultural diversification is one of the essential components of economic

growth. It is the stage where traditional agriculture is transformed into a dynamic and
commercial sector by shifting the traditional agricultural product mix to high standard
products, that has a high potential in stimulating production rate. Here, the agricultural
diversification is supported by a change in technology or consumer demand, trade or
government policy, and by transportation, irrigation, and, other infrastructures
development.

Two aspects of Diversification

 The change in the cropping pattern

 The transformation of the manpower from agriculture work to other
associated activities like poultry, livestock, fisheries, etc. and also non-
agriculture sector

For rural people, diversification or focusing on associate activity is important as

it gives them an opportunity to earn extra income and overcome poverty.

3. Resource conservation and regeneration

Conservation practices play an important role in decreasing food safety risks on the
farm. Stream-side vegetation, grassed filter strips, and wetlands help keep our water
supply clean by reducing the movement of pathogens, nutrients, and pesticides into
streams, rivers, and lakes. Windbreaks and hedgerows reduce the amount of dust and
other airborne contaminates blowing onto produce fields. Conservation practices also
serve as wildlife habitat. That habitat can support beneficial insects that prey upon
pests, raptors that serve as on-farm rodent control, or other species that help to reduce
the need for toxic chemicals to control agricultural pests. Despite these benefits,
conservation practices – particularly those that encourage wildlife – have been seen as a
potential threat to food safety.
The goal of regenerative farming systems (Rodale, 1983) is to increase soil quality
and biodiversity in farmland while producing nourishing farm products profitably.
Unifying principles consistent across regenerative farming systems include (1)
abandoning tillage (or actively rebuilding soil communities following a tillage event), (2)
eliminating spatio-temporal events of bare soil, (3) fostering plant diversity on the farm,
and (4) integrating livestock and cropping operations on the land. Further
characterization of a regenerative system is problematic because of the myriad
combinations of farming practices that comprise a system targeting the regenerative
goal. Other comparisons of conventional agriculture with alternative agriculture
schemes do not compare in situ best management practices developed by farmers, and
frequently ignore a key driver to decision making on farming operations: the examined
systems’ relative net profit to the farmer
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